Airtac May sales rose 26% YoY, with China's factory automation demand still strong

Overview

This report tracks high-frequency China factory automation data for May 2026, with Taiwan pneumatic equipment maker Airtac as the core sample. About 90% of Airtac's sales come from China. Its May RMB-denominated sales rose 26% YoY, and management said both sales and orders hit record highs while remaining optimistic about FY26 pneumatic equipment market demand.

Core views

Nomura's core view is that overall China automation demand remains strong, though there is month-to-month volatility across industries. Orders from the electronics and battery sectors have moderated since April, mainly due to seasonal factors; machine tool orders continued to improve from April's high base, possibly driven by AI data center-related investment. Aside from solar-related industries, demand in textile machinery, packaging machinery, and general machinery also showed signs of sequential improvement.

Analysis framework

The report uses Airtac's monthly sales, orders, shipments, and end-customer industry mix as its main observation window, and combines these with working days around the Lunar New Year, daily average sales metrics, Komtrax operating hours, and JMTBA China machine tool orders and other machinery demand indicators to assess China's factory automation cycle.

Methodology notes

• High-frequency industry data trackingYoY/MoM breakdown of sales and orders

  Use changes in monthly sales, orders, and shipments to gauge the strength of automation demand.

  The report looks at YoY, MoM, and daily average sales simultaneously to strip out the effects of working days and Lunar New Year timing; orders exceeding shipments are viewed as a signal that demand remains supported.

• Industry demand analysisBreakdown of sales mix by customer industry

  Break down sales performance by end industries such as electronics, batteries, machine tools, packaging, textiles, and solar.

  This method is used to distinguish overall automation demand from volatility in individual industries and to identify structural factors such as AI data center investment, seasonality, and solar weakness.

Asset mapping & comparison

Structured mapping from thesis to named assets (strengths, weaknesses, peers, risks).

• Airtac [1590 TT]

  Core observation target, with about 90% of sales coming from China.

  Strengths

  May sales and orders reached record YoY highs, orders continued to exceed shipments, and management is optimistic on FY26 demand.

  Weaknesses

  Total sales in May fell 10% MoM, and some electronics and battery demand pulled back from April's strong levels.

  Comparison

  Daily average sales fell only 1% MoM, suggesting that working days and long holidays explain part of the sequential decline.

  Risks

  Monthly industry volatility, weak solar-related demand, changes in input costs due to geopolitical factors, and uncertainty over the timing of China policy support.

• China factory automation supply chain

  Airtac sales data is used as a high-frequency proxy for China's automation demand.

  Strengths

  Except for solar-related industries, most end markets posted YoY growth, with machine tools, textiles, and general machinery performing strongly.

  Weaknesses

  Demand structure is clearly divergent, and the sequential slowdown in electronics and batteries may affect short-term market sentiment.

  Comparison

  Machine tool orders improved further from April's high level, while solar-related energy and lighting declined YoY.

  Risks

  Slower macro investment, volatility in manufacturing capex, seasonal disruptions, and policy implementation falling short of expectations.

Key data

• Airtac May RMB sales+26% YoY, -10% MoMThe company released its May sales data on June 2.
• Nomura estimate of May daily average sales+26% YoY, -1% MoMAssumes 20.5 working days in May, implying performance was broadly similar to April.
• Electronics industrySales +12% YoY, sales weight 26%Pulled back somewhat since April due to seasonal factors.
• Battery industrySales +55% YoY, sales weight 18%YoY growth was strong, but sequentially fell back from April's strong level.
• Automobile industrySales +15% YoY, sales weight 9%Maintained positive growth.
• Packaging machinerySales +20% YoY, sales weight 8%Orders appear to have risen sequentially.
• Machine toolsSales +35% YoY, sales weight 8%Orders continued to improve from April's high level, which the report believes may be driven by AI data center investment.
• General machinerySales +35% YoY, sales weight 5%Orders appear to have risen sequentially.
• Textile machinerySales +46% YoY, sales weight 5%Orders appear to have risen sequentially.
• Energy and lighting (solar-related)Sales -5% YoY, sales weight 3%This was the main relatively weak end market in the report.

Impact & implications

If Airtac's data is representative, demand for China's factory automation and pneumatic equipment remained resilient in May 2026, and orders outpacing shipments indicate that near-term demand has not clearly weakened. AI data center investment may become a new driver for machine tools and some automation demand, but for electronics, batteries, and solar-related industries it is still necessary to distinguish seasonal volatility from genuine demand softening.

Risks

• Monthly data is affected by working days and Lunar New Year timing, so single-month sequential changes may overstate or understate the true trend.
• Although the pullback in electronics and batteries is attributed to seasonality, it still needs to be monitored to see whether it develops into demand cooling.
• The solar-related energy and lighting segment declined YoY, indicating that some end-market demand remains weak.
• Geopolitical factors may affect input costs, although the company said they remain manageable for now.
• There is uncertainty over the timing and strength of government support measures and policies related to the 15th Five-Year Plan.

What to watch

• Whether Airtac's subsequent monthly sales and orders continue to exceed shipments.
• Whether the electronics and battery sectors resume growth after the seasonal pullback.
• Whether machine tool orders continue to be driven by AI data center investment.
• Whether solar-related automation demand stabilizes.
• Follow-up Chinese government support measures for intelligent manufacturing and industrial upgrading.